The Shadow of Tuscany
by Orange Rain
Summary: In AC:B Claudia reveals that she is an expert knife fighter. This is my take on her hidden life as an Assassin. Fill for the kink meme.


A/N- I do not own Assassin's Creed or any of the characters in this story. It is not for profit.

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><p>I pull the hood of my robe tighter around me, concealing my face as I pass through the throngs of people. I move as a wraith through the crowd, unseen and unobserved by the people around me. My gate is marked with a subtle, yet defining, purpose. A singular objective. Yet none observe, their attention far too drawn to the spectacle unfolding in the public square to notice a figure like me.<p>

My mind is haunted by old ghosts - the memories. Times of celebration, happiness and joy - morphed into feelings of deep loneliness and utter despair. Like night and day, two sides of a florin - a family strong... and a family broken. I was not here, I had not witnessed it, but that doesn't stop me from seeing their faces, hearing their voices - being here, seeing this place, burns like salt in an open wound.

The Piazza della Signoria.

More specifically the execution platform before it, where three more people were being prepared for the gallows. Today is execution day in Firenze, where everyone who's anyone comes to the public square to witness the ghoulish event. Men, women, children... they come from all over, all hoping for a glimpse of death, cheering the spectacle, anticipating the begging cries for mercy and the sound of broken necks.

I conceal a snarl of disgust as I move closer, carefully weaving between the cheering citizens. I come upon a slight clearing in the crowd and see the platform ahead. My eyes linger for a moment on the three victims - currently being read their last rites as the soldiers tighten the nooses around their necks.

Murder? Adultery? I forget the crimes they are accused of. I don't even see their faces, instead I see _them_ - the ghosts of a lifetime past; hands bound, nooses around neck, resigned to their fate in the gallows. I clench my eyes shut for a moment, then I open them again - the ghosts are gone, and there **he** is.

_Acilio Moretti_. A ranking member of the Florentine Borgia guards, and the handpicked executioner of Firenze. He was the one the Templars used to do their dirty work here, to eliminate dissidents and political enemies under the false pretense of justice. A mere lackey in the Templar chain, executing on order from his Templar masters; yet justice - and the ghosts of the past - demanded his blood.

Uberto Alberti had given the order... Moretti had pulled the lever. It was an oversight I intended to correct.

"People of Firenze!" The brute yells out to the crowd, "Today these three men stand accused of crimes against the public welfare. They have stolen property of the city, committed murder on the innocent, whored their bodies in devilish ways, and conspired against the good people of our city!"

The crowd breaks out in angered jeers at the three men. They flinch at his words as if stricken, repulsed by the very thought of committing such deeds. Their faces show anger at the allegations, tinged with the obvious fear at their plight. They are no more than twenty years of age. I shake my head and step closer to the stage, the ghosts of the past threatening to return.

I had traveled much distance, spent much time seeking him. He had not proven too difficult to find, given his status as a public figure and the attention his executions brought from the public. I could have reached him quietly in his living quarters, but this wasn't about stealth - it was about sending a message.

"In light of the evidence we have gathered, and none who will speak in your defense, I am bound to pronounce you guilty as charged!"

I tense my wrist in preparation, noting the positions of the guards around the stage, and their proximity to him.

"As penalty for these crimes - I sentence you to DEATH!"

I step within feet of the platform as cheers ring out at his proclamation, my movements are concealed from the spell bound audience, distracted as they are by their blood lust.

The ghosts of the past flash again as he approaches the lever.

Not this time.

I burst out of the crowd at a full run, ignoring their startled cries and the outraged shouts of the guards. I vault over their swords and leap onto the stage. Moretti attempts to flee at the sight of Assassin white, but he's far too late. With a final rush, I tackle him to the ground and pierce his chest with my hidden blade.

The world around us falls away as his blood spills on my hands. The people and the guards around us are relegated to background noise, leaving the two of us to speak as I hold him in my arms.

_"I have searched for you, long anticipating this moment. At last it has come, and you bleed on the very stage of your victims. How does it feel to endure their pain as your own?"_

_His eyes open wide, shocked by my gender. The fact that someone of his standing can be ended by a woman._

_"Such beauty, such youth, such... innocence - brought to this."_

_"Not so innocent... as you can see."_

_"Why then? Why have you done this?"_

_"Is it not obvious? Do you not realize who I am?" I pull my hood back a bit._

_"The Auditore girl! The one we spared... our mercy, repaid with such... violence."_

_"You, the executioner of Firenze, speak to me of violence? You who accepted bribes, dealt death as spectator sport, threw in with those Templar wolves, and unjustly ended the lives of the innocent?"_

_"No, I dealt death to the guilty - guilty of disrupting the greater peace to spread dangerous ideas. Assassins... you and your ilk. The world will never know peace until you are eliminated. The Templars simply offered a path."_

_"And my family?"_

_"Your father, your brothers, that... boy - all notable deaths to the advancement of Order. You should celebrate their loss, not mourn it."_

_"You make a mockery of everything that is good and just. You destroyed lives, ruined homes, dabbled in greed, and stained this place with your presence! Now I will stain the ground with it!"_

_With that I trigger the spring on my hidden blade, sending it into his throat before he can respond._


End file.
